This week ended up being quite a week of service. And it put my French
to the test. Phew.

On Monday we had the priviledge of hearing from Sister Lawrence who
spoke about the signs of the second coming of Christ. As always it was
enlightening and instilled a desire to live a better life and become
more prepared. At the end Elder Lawrence (of the Area Presidency and
Second Quorom of the 70) spoke to us. Last week it was announced in
church that our stake is going to pray and fast that Moscow will find
the buildings that we need for the church. Since Moscow is one of the
largest cities in the world, property is hard to come by. Also, most
of our buildings are find to find and are tucked away into nooks and
crannies. We don't have a building large enough to hold the stake. The
fast will be next fast Sunday but Elder Lawrence encouraged us as
missionaries to include this cause in every prayer that we say.

Monday was also the coldest day of winter. It reach past -30 in the
morning. We missed the coldest part of the day but it was still pretty
cold.

Tuesday we had a mission conference in preparation for the mission
tour next month. It was also the day we are supposed to speak 100%
Russian outside the apartment. So far that has been interesting and a
bit of a challenge at time. But our mission needs it and it will be
exciting to see how our language abilities grow.

Wednesday we did service at Vika's apartment with the elders. As
always she was so happy to see us. She has been coming to church
everyweek so far and is becoming fully active. She also told us that
she will receive her patriarchal blessing next week so I am especially
excited and happy for her. English club was great as always and some
elders made root beer floats (they got extract from a package from
home) and it was fabulous. I forgot just how delicious root beer is
and I tried to savor it as I devoured it. The Russians seemed to like
it a lot and they said it tasted like Kvas (I disagree).

Thursday was a mixed day. We went out to Izolda, an old lady who lives
outside Moscow. I feel like I have hit a wall with her. We talk about
faith with her but she says no matter what she does she will only have
weak faith. I left a little drained and sad. But her nephew came over
and she became a lot more animated and we got to hear her talk more
about the church to him. He liked us and said that we had light in our
eyes. Of course, he asked some of those questions in order to test us
about how we react to certain situations, like beggars for example. We
tried our best and I felt happy testifying to someone and leaving him
with a good impression.

Then we met with Anna! She is continuing to be fabulous. In the past
few weeks her love for the Book of Mormon has grown so much. Before
she read it like a book, but now she is receiving answers to prayers
and finding wonderful insights as she reads. We always start by
talking about her reading and each week we go longer and longer
because every week she is learning so much. We talked about baptism
and the Holy Ghost with her and asked her to pray about a baptism
date. It is always hard to come up with commitments because she is
continuing to do all that she needs to to progress. When we asked her
to pray about a date she said that that day she had been thinking
about that and with a new job she needed to start thinking about this
things more concretely.

On Friday we met with Elise, our investigator from Chad who knows
French. We went over to her apartment and we watched the Testiments
movie with her. She loved it and liked seeing how the Bible and Book
of Mormon support each other. She knows the Bible really weel and is
taking the intiative in reading. Last week we gave her the Restoration
pamphlet. At the back are questions to help you study and understand
the parts of the lessons. We didn't ask her but she went through and
answered the questions and looked up the references. My French was
rusty but at least I understood all that she said. Oh! She gave the
opening prayer during our lesson and in her prayer she bore testimony
about the Book of Mormon and Joseph Smith's calling as a prophet!
Elise also came to church on Sunday! At the end she said that she was
really happy that she came. We are meeting with her this week again to
talk about the plan of salvation and I think we can set a baptismal
date with her.

Friday morning was a little rough I'll admit. Our landlord came over
to collect rent and he was not very nice to my companion and would
make fun of her Russian. He would say, "She can't get offended or mad
because she doesn't understand!" In some ways it was a blessing that
she could not understand him. She thought he was funny. But I knew
what he said and I did not like it. I had a hard time having charity
as he was being so mean. After he left I had to sit down and have a
long prayer before I could return to my studies because I could not
feel the Spirit. But as you can tell from our meeting with Elise, the
day got better and I tried my hardest to forgive him.

Saturday Sister Workman and I headed out early to help at a church
conference. It was a conference for the adults over 30 who are not
married. One of the members from our ward called us and asked for
help. I felt glad to know that they felt that they could turn to us
for help. We helped most of the day but I felt great. I got to talk to
people from all over Russia and I just felt great helping. I learned
some interesting things as well. During Soviet times bananas were a
sign of wealth and good living. There were always bananas at communist
party meetings.

Sunday was great although because of Elise she spent most of our
church time with the international ward. Afterwards I was so exhausted
trying to keep my French and Russian straight. And afterwards I found
more people in the ward that knew French and can help if I am
transfered.

Well, I have 1 minute left on my time. I love you all and thank you
for your prayers and your support. It is working miracles in my life
and in the mission work. Prayers are much more powerful than we think
sometimes.

Moving on up.

This week turned out to be a much better week which was a huge tender mercy. I'm not sure what made last week so very hard but I am starting to get some ideas. On Tuesday night we were told that we were having a special mission meeting the next day. We had no idea what the meeting was about but we soon found out. President Sorenson revealed what is happening with the Mocow Mission and the Moscow West Mission since the Moscow West mission president goes home in June. We know what is happening (and it is very exciting and opens a lot of doors of possibilities) but it will soon be announced in the church news so keep a look out! In the meeting President Sorenson revealed that in most of our letters to him last week it appeared to him that almost all of us had rough weeks, either due to illness or just hard times. To him it was a testimony that Satan is not happy and was working on us. This has provided some comfort as I look back on the challenges.

I'm not sure what made the difference but this week was very different. It was a great week. I'm sure part of it is due to your prayers on my behalf. That doesn't mean that the week did not have difficulties but at least as a companionship we got along fine and had some fun times along the way. I have noticed a lot of good changes in my companion and I am excited and humbled that I have the privledge of seeing her change and become better.

On Tuesday we had district meeting and it was good as always. Afterwards we went to an outercity about an hour away to meet with an inactive member that lives there. She is an old lady and she was interesting. We were with her for 2 hours and when we left I felt so drained. The first half hour she talked about her problems with her family and most of what she said was doctrinally sound. She showed us her Book of Mormon and every verse in it is highlighted. Then she asked the question, "What has the prophet said about the AntiChrist?" Afterwards she preceded to tell us all about the Anti-Christ and read Russian Orthodox prayers about protection against the Anti-Christ. Oh goodness. We tried to start a lesson and I think we got 4 sentences in before she started to ask questions like, "Where are your works? Where is the evidence of your charity?" and be a little confrontational. I did not feel the Spirit and I did not like the atmosphere. But then at the end she talked about how we were an answer to prayer and how she was so happy to see us and loved us. I have mixed feelings about this meeting but we will probably see her once more this transfer. On the train ride back I slumped in my seat, exhausted, and read the newest Liahona for comfort. But I did receive comfort and it makes for a funny story. Our district leader was laughing as we recounted the story.

Wednesday we found out the news about our mission and what will change in our mission. We also got a phone call from some other sisters in our mission. "We have a French investigator for you. She has been searching for the church for 6 months and referred herself." This new investigator is from Chad and has lived in Russia for 20 years. We meet with her on Friday and that was one of the best and most interesting lessons. Elise's first language is French and she has good Russian. Thankfully, I got a hold of some French teaching phamplets and I studied them all day. Our lesson was a mixture of French and Russian and I have to say my French is so rusty and my French has a touch of Russian in it. The teaching was simple but I managed in French. Sister Workman would teach in Russian and Elise (since I spoke French) mainly responded in French and thankfully I understood everything that she said. Phew. The lesson was great and she loved it. She had always wondered why there were so many religions so we were able to answer her questions. When we talked about prayer she made the comment, "How is God supposed to give you anything if you aren't willing to ask?" She invited us over to her house and wants to learn more. She said as soon as she receives answers to her prayers that she will be baptized. She prayed at the end and asked Heavenly Father to know if Joseph Smith was a prophet and thanked Him for our lesson. She is amazing. Sadly, she was not able to come to church but when she called to tell us she said that had read the brochure we left her and she loved it. She also kissed the French Book of Mormon that the other sisters gave her.

Thursday we met with Anna and she is doing great. She said that Thursday nights she has a hard time sleeping because she keeps thinking about our lessons and all the new things she is learning. Her Book of Mormon reading has changed quite a bit and is more enriched than it was before. As she shares her insights I have learned so much and when she shares thoughts I have new thoughts occuring to me. With her I really understand the promise in D&C that we know when we are teaching by the Spirit because both the teacher and the learner will be edified. On accident she left her Book of Mormon in the ward building and she described how she felt to me on Sunday. She said, "I thought that my bag felt light. At first I checked for my wallet and my documents. Then I discovered that what I had forgotten was more precious than money." 

We are continuing to help Victoria who has been coming to church and is meeting with the bishop. I have been blessed in my time in Sokolniki to see two members reactivated and I have been touched to realize my role in helping them come back. I forgot to mention this last week but on a particularly bad day Elder Francom told me that he had a meeting with a few members and our senior couple. They went around in a circle and shared a spiritual experience. There was a lady there, Olga, and her spiritual experience was when the sisters (and she mentioned us by name to the group) dropped by and after we left she thought about church and felt like she needed to come to church. Since our visit she has come to church every week. I believe I wrote about her to you in December. We dropped by and she said she would be at church the next day. Appartently, she had been inactive for a long time but after our visit she has come every week so I thought she had only been less active. 

Sunday was great. Amazing member missionary Masha bought me a pair of warm wool mittens. Also, one of the elder's investigators brought (I think the elders said "tricked") his female friend to church. She stayed for all three hours and stayed afterwards with us as we read the Book of Mormon. I tried to go out of my way to talk to her because at one point I looked over and she was by herself after Sacrament Meeting. We chatted and she was so nice. She took a Book of Mormon and we just had a good time talking. At night she sent us a text apoligized for recommending some music that might not be appropriate and she thanked us for the day. She said. "today I felt comfortable and cozy just like at home. Bless you!" 

And Maria, who was baptized in December, is doing great! She is strong and loves the church. We talked about missionary work and she taught us. She pointed out that we can still testify and share the gospel even if we speak different languages. 

Yesterday was also really cold and we went contacting in a park. Although that park is typically busy there were not a lot of people. But we took lots of pictures and had a good time freezing and walking around. We talked about random things and discussed our contacting strategy. My feet felt like they were about to fall off and my cheeks and nose hurt so much. My hair had frost and Sister Workman's eyelashes were frozen. 

So as you can tell this week was a good week. It did have its downs but the ups outweighed them. Sister Workman and I are getting along fine and getting work done. It helps that right now we have a lot going for us and we are focusing on the work more. There has been a lot more kindness. Again, I don't know what changed but something has and I hope it keeps going. 

Thank you for your help and your support.

There are always ups and downs.

This week was a little rough at times. When I look back at it really I had a lot of good things happen, which goes to show the importance of attitude. This week we got a lot of figs which is always a little disappointing. But we made the best of it, I suppose. On Monday we were supposed to have a meeting with that new surprise investigator and we even arranged for a member to come. Unfortunately, because her phone number did not work and she probably forgot she never showed up. So, instead we read the Book of Mormon with the Valya, the member. 

On Tuesday I actually went a split with Sister Carlson and that was great. She did a training on the Book of Mormon and then we set out on the metro with the goal to hand out two Books of Mormon. She is amazing and handed out a Book of Mormon and got a contact. I did not hand out any but I did talk to some people and I tried. I still have to work on that whole "awkwardness" thing that I do so well. We did lots of talking and trying to understand my companion. She also asked how I was doing. We had gone on a split with the Training Sisters not long ago but our district leader called Sister Carlson and Sister Fralovo and expressed some concern to them. It was good to talk to Sister Carlson and just feel the joy of missionary work that radiates from her. She always motivates me to do my best and sometimes I worry about whether I can give my all until the end of this transfer. I know that I will endure and survive but I want to really do my best work.

Wednesday we helped Vika, our inactive who is really working on becoming active again. We are serving her every week now and helping her to learn the hymns because she loves music. She also feeds us delicious food and tells us how to things certain things the "true Russian way". Then we made some brownies for English club and as always, English Club is great. One of the ladies is our group really wants to help me learn Russian and so she has been so nice and teaching me lots of words. 

Thursday we had a great meeting with Anna, our investigator about the Plan of Salvation. Wow, I was learning all sorts of new things and she was teaching me about Adam and Eve, why having a plan is important, and the purpose of the Final Judgment. As we discussed the final judgment she made the comment that judgment is really for our benefit. "God knows based on our works where we will go. The judgment helps me to understand why we are sent to different places." We also discussed baptism and she said that the decision to be baptized was made the minute she walked into our church. Right she is thinking about summer and she just wants to better understand and recognize the Holy Ghost. Anna and Vika have been my biggest blessing this transfer.

Friday was rough. I woke up with the biggest headache and felt like I was going to be sick. Unfortuantely, that was the day when we were supposed to have 3 lessons and I was not feeling up to it. I slept but every time I stood up I felt nauseus again. So we called some other sisters and asked for their help. Luckily, one of the them was sick so she came over and stayed with me so my companion could go to the meetings. Thankfully, for my companion our most important meeting cancelled. The sister I stayed with was Sister Horspool, who actually trained Sister Workman. Together we tried to think of ways to help Sister Workman and how to motivate her. As well, we discussed the work and our missions. Having had some challenging transfer we talked about the lessons we had learned and about reaching our potential. Sister Horspool paid me a compliment. She said that she has noticed the I have gained a lot more confidence. Sister Horspool and I go way back to Freshman Year at BYU.

Saturday I was in a bad mood and the events of the day made it worse. No one was answering their phone and I could not get a hold of Valeria, who was recently baptized and has only come to church once since. Then we were supposed to have a meeting and she never showed up then she called and asked where we were. Thankfully, the day improved and we went with the elders to Vika's apartment to help her clean. With Sister Workman we mopped her floor and moved a lot of boxes. I am always happiest serving and some good manual labor helped. 

Sunday was a mixed day. Church was good. But I realize now that I was overly emotional and every small thing was getting to me. Before going out to go contacting I had to go to the bathroom to pray for strength to get through the day. And I did survive and I talked to a few people on the metro. Unfortuately, I did not give out any Books of Mormon but I did try. 

That was our week, filled with lots of good things but some challenges as well. It has been a bit chilly here. On Wednesday it was -20C and it was cold. Sometimes I don't like the cold but most times I don't mind it too much unless we are out contacting for a looong time. It is a nice relief from our apartment which is sooo hot. All of our vegetables go bad so fast if we don't put them in the fridge. 

This will be an interesting transfer and every prayer helps. I am working really hard on trying to not be so judgmental and working on my patience. Some days I feel like I am at the end of my rope. Who knew enduring to the end of a transfer could seem so daunting. But each P-Days reaffirms that I survived =) 

Good Week in Moscow

This week has been a better week. On Monday for P-Day we went lazer tagging to celebrate our district leaders birthday. I don't remember whether or not I mentioned that last week. Either way it was lots of fun and I didn't come in last! (Actually I was second to last but it's not last place right?) After we went lazer tagging we emailed home, then rushed home to change clothes and then we went on a split. My companion, Sister Workman had her visa trip on Tuesday so she was heading to President Sorenson's house and Sister Rasmussen returned to me (she is currently in a threesome companionship). Sister Rasmussen and I started to return to the apartment to drop off her things and we were almost there when the Asisstants to the President called. 

"What you are doing right now?" they asked.

"We are almost to our apartment," I responded.

"How soon can you get here [meaning the central building]? There is a girl here and she lives in your area."

So we ran (literally at times), careful not to slip on the ice, to the center building in the center of Moscow. A girl who was in Sister Rasmussen's group at English club was there. We met with her and talked about God and our relationship with Him. We then gave her a Book of Mormon and taught about prayer. I'll admit I was so frazzled at the beginning of your meeting but at one point I was having trouble understanding and I was trying to figure things out so I asked right then if we could say a prayer. After the prayer the lesson went a lot smoother. She agreed to read the Book of Mormon and we have a meeting set up with her for tonight. When I tried calling her, to confirm the appointment, the number did not work so I am really hoping that she remembers.

On Tuesday we had district meeting and it was fun because Sister Ramussen and another elder who had previously served in Sokolniki was there. We talked about finding people to teach and it was nice to have some new input from other missionaries. I'll admit on our split Sister Rasmussen and I talked a lot. We had a lot of catching up to do and in some ways it was a therapy of sorts. I also had her help me understand some records that I did not understand. During the night it was a little frustrating because there had been some lack of communication on whether or not my companion would be returning that night or the next day. We needed up meeting back with Sister Workman late at night.

The next morning was a little rough for some reason. We had Sister Rasmussen with us during our studies and that companion study was so awkward and I felt like I was pulling teeth. Companionship studies have been better since then and perhaps it was the third missionary that made it so difficult. After Sister Rasmussen joined up with her companions we worked on the area book and tried calling people from it. Unfortunately, no one answered. (As Sister Companion I get the phone. I'll admit making calls and taking calls are not my favorite but I do it and manage not to be too awkward.)

English club that night was small but it was still fun. We talked about schools and explained the American School system. In Russia there is homework but most of their points and grades are made up on oral recitation in class and oral exams. Russian universities just finished up their exams and now universities students get two weeks to relax before the new semester begins.

Thursday was a fun day. It was transfer meeting and although none of the sisters were transferred we were still able to go because a senior couple is leaving soon so they bore their final testimonies. It was great and it was a spiritual rejeuviation that I needed. We then handed out flyers for English Club. One lady gave me a hug and another man told me to return to America. Sadly, the meeting for that night "figged" us (a fig is when a meeting doesn't shop up or cancels on us). 

Friday was a very busy day. We met with an inactive, a recent convert, and an investigator. The inactive is doing great! She is reading the Book of Mormon everyday and the Liahonas and is recognizing that she feels the Spirit. She has come to church and wants to become active and remain active. She realizes that she does not understand everything and doesn't quite have a testimony but she wants to. In the course of the week I saw a huge change in her and I was so excited. I have been blessed on my mission to see the power of the Book of Mormon in changing people. The Book of Mormon is incredible and can bring about so many miracles.

The other two lessons turned out a little differently than planned. Our recent convert has not come to church a lot since her baptism. The biggest problem is that she never told her family because her parents are protiv (against the church). That is a big barrier to overcome and she has had a lot of trials lately but she still meets with us and her friend, Masha who is a super member-missionary, calls her frequently and invites her to activities. Originally we had planned to talk about missionary work but then we found out about some of her trials so we changed the lesson and talked about the example of Nephi and the Atonement. 

An investigator requires a lot of patience. She has her own set of ideas but she likes our message. Now that I have a firm testimony of the Book of Mormon I think that it will become important for her in learning the truth. 

That is the brief recap for the week. It has been a lot colder this week. Perhaps because it came so gradually I some days don't notice how extremely cold it gets. But I have started wearing a hat and I can tell when it is really cold because my face hurts. Also if we are out contacting for a while our feet begin to freeze and it is that feeling when your feet are numb but feel too big for your shoes. Yesterday, we went contacting in a park for two hours. It was not as cold as it was some other days but by the time we were done my feet were frozen. Rest assured, I do bundle up and when we go contacting I pull out my thermal underwear and wear it under my tights. I'll admit I don't mind the cold too much and I am happy that it is colder so I can say I have a Russian winter (I'm sure anyone who served or been to other places in Russia is laughing because Moscow is not too bad in comparison).

Contacting in still challenging but we set a goal to go contacting for an hour everyday. Now that we do it the most challenging thing is to make every minute matter. Sometimes there is "contacting" that involves more wandering around than just stopping and trying to talk. And I feel that sometimes we get so caught up in trying to "feel" which way we need to go rather than going where we are and trusting that there are people in our path or if there is a certain place we need to be then we will be directed. But I've found that the first three people and the first three rejections are the hardest. Once that barrier is overcome it becomes a lot easier. And the barrier then renews itself the next day so you are back at square one again :) 

Russian is coming along as always. I don't know if mentally something has changed but I just really want correction at this point. I get so happy when I am corrected so I can fix my errors. I just remember when I first got here correction was hard to take. And I have had some companions who don't like to be corrected too. But now I become happy because I am learning so much and then I go out share what I learned to others.

Overall, things are going pretty well. It is still the beginning but I am trying to keep this optimism up. I started a "happiness journal" where at the end of each night I write down all the goods things that happened that day. Sometimes it is tangible things and other times I write down realizations that I had that day. They might be small but I always end up going to bed in a happier mood and it helps me remember that "all days are good days. Some are just better than others." What also helps me is just trying to remember that I am not perfect and realzing all my weakness and shortcoming keep me humble (I hope). 

So that has been it for the week. Thank you so much for all the prayers and the support. I am so blessed by all of you and you have helped me experience so many miracles. Thank you.

PS: Next time I will be better on sending some winter pictures. 

Mission Report

This week was a surprisingly better week. I am learning to deal with lots of little things and working on loving and helping my companion. There are still challenging things of course but I learn to deal with it. Again, progress comes slowly but I am working on trying to understand her. 

On Tuesday we had a Sister's Conference which was very nice. We studied women in the Bible and thought of their traits that we would like to emulate. The theme of the conference was Helman 5:12 and faith. The food was great but the best part was being able to talk to other sisters. I took the time to talk to Sister's Workman's former companion and gained some advice as well as talking to other sisters. We also got the new Relief Society books, "Daughters in my Kingdom" and were encouraged to read a little from it.

I'll admit we have not done as much contacting as we should have. Part of it was that we worked on the area book and I found out that Sister Workman likes to organize. We also had a good companionship inventory where I learned a lot about how my companion views her language which gave me more insight into her. 

In terms of meeting we had a few! There were good but some of them had me walking away a little frustrated. We met with one inactive lady, who complimented me on my Russian, and she has a lot to overcome but she says that she wants to resolve her concerns. She likes the "mormon culture" but has some doctrinal problems with the Plan of Salvation. But to my surprise (oh, me of little faith) she has been reading the Book of Mormon and she called it "a pill for the soul". I was suprised and overjoyed and I hope that as she keeps reading it will help her resolve her concerns. 

We also met with Izolda, an old lady who is inactive due to health problems. It was a good lesson but frustrating in the end. We talked about Heavenly Father and how much He loves her. We shared President Uchtdorf's talk from General Conference and she loved it. But when we asked her to pray and ask God to know how much He loves her she said that she wouldn't because she feels that God would tell her how bad she is. 

Sunday was really good. A lady from Geneva came to church so I translated for her, mostly in English and then a little French. Her first language was French (mine is so rusty) but her English was fantastic. She asked questions about the church in Russia and we talked about the temple. She gave me her address and said to look her up whenever I go to Geneva. After church we read from the Book of Mormon with Valya, a member of our ward. She reads in English and we read in Russia. It was good training since reading outload is my weakest skill in Russia. Valya also corrected our pronunciation and helped us to say words that missionary say wrong. We then helped her to say the words "ten" and "tan", and "bed" "bad" and "bat"which are hard for people learning English. 

Russian is coming along. Somedays it is hard and I get a mixture of feelings. The same day I received a compliment on my Russian from an inactive I talked to our relief society president. She was asking what we typically do and I explained contacting. Without thinking she made the comment that it must be hard when you don't know Russian and then asked my companion if she spoke better Russian than me. Sometimes it can get a little discouraging but I try not to let it bring me down and try to let it humble me instead. 

Things are getting better and I am just trying my hardest to be diligent. It is colder now so I have my winter coat on. Let's see what this next week has in store for me!